Figuring College Financing

Divorce has big implications for financial aid. The divorced parent
whose home was the crash pad for the child more than half the time in the 12
months prior to filing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (Fafsa) is
the one whose income and assets are reported on that form. If the parent
filling out that form is remarried, the new spouse’s finances must also be
reported, which can obviously change financial aid eligibility.

About 250 colleges, including every Ivy League school except Princeton University, require the parent without formal custody to also submit a
supplemental financial form: the College Board’s CSS/Financial Aid Profile.
That form, too, ropes in the income, assets and expenses of a new spouse.